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It's a rather quaint town when you get down to it. At least, that's what the Sheriff would argue. Warm and dry in the mornings and afternoons with a brisk coolness in the evenings. The perfect type of weather to just sit out on your rocking chair and observe the comings and goings.
... Of course, there's not much in the way of comings and goings when there aren't any actual people here to watch. Nevertheless, don't let that get you down! The town is your oyster and those roosters won't stop crowing until everyone's out of bed. Up and at 'em, rise and shine, it's time to make the day yours!
After all, there's nothing wrong with the town today and you might just want to savor it while it lasts.
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robowest2017-02-06 12:00 pm
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But what they can make out is this: a counter with a cash register. Shelves lining the walls filled with stuff. Tables with other items on it. The shapes are enough to indicate weaponry of some kind.
There is also a big dark mass in the center, near the back of the shop, pointing towards the door. ]
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[ Look, she's talked to Jason. Anyway, she doesn't know what that is, but she doesn't want to test their limits too much. She straightens up and frowns at Milla. ]
We can't go through the door, but I don't want to leave it boarded up, either. Do you think it's safe to just get the boards off of it?
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[Milla doesn't know what "machine" Xion is talking about, but it definitely looks like the front entrance is off limits after all. she steps away from the window and eyes the boarded up door with a contemplative expression]
. . . I think it might be, yes. If we peel off the boards, but leave the door closed, then we should avoid activating whatever trap awaits us.
[but that dark mass is still pretty suspicious, even from the window]
Try throwing a rock or a nail inside, to see if the shadow moves. I want to make sure it's not alive.
[and with that, Milla's gonna go rip some more boards down kthnxbai]
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[ Xion glances up at Milla, eyes searching, and then nods. ]
Okay.
[ Well, finding a rock isn't hard. Deciding how to go about this is. Jason had gotten shot in the shoulder when they opened up the clinic, right? Hm. Xion will (slowly) move over to the window Milla got a board off of, since it provides a bigger open space she can aim at. She hefts her rock, glances from her hand to the window .... and then winds up.
Her aim is pretty great. She nails the hole in the window, but from here, she can't see if the rock will strike its target. Regardless, she will immediately duck. ]
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[either way, once the boards are removed from the door (and tossed haphazardly off the porch, out of the way, so OPERATION ESCAPE QUICKLY can happen), Milla turns towards Xion]
Did anything happen?
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[ Not sure if she should be concerned or frustrated. ]
Should we try opening the door and getting behind it? I don't think it's safe to just walk right in, but ... maybe if we just get the door open something will happen, and we can get out of the way.
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[and. . . hm! that's actually an even better plan than their original two. instead of avoiding the trap entirely, they could activate it while they're just. well out of the way. that way, no one gets hurt. right??]
We'd have to move very quickly, but that might be safer than entering through a window and risking activating a trap there. [glances down at Xion's foot. she noticed that the other young woman wasn't showing any visible signs of pain, but she's still concerned] Do you think you can get out of the way fast enough?
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Whether she will be or not is immaterial to her, as long as she can stay alive. ]
Come on.
[ Xion will move towards the door, making sure Milla is close by. They'll probably need to move together if something goes wrong. ]
Are you ready?
[ Because once she has confirmation, she'll brace herself - leaning her weight on her good foot - to move, and then yank open the door. ]
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[either way, she shifts closer to Xion to help her open the door]
I'm ready.
[and once that confirmation is given, she assists in yanking said door open. . .! making sure to stay tucked behind it of course]
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The moment the door unclicks from the lock, there is a loud BOOM and the girls are going to have to be really fast to get out of the way of that --
Well, that cannonball being shot directly at them from inside the room. The cannonball that is, of course, being shot out of that cannon that was at the other end of the room. That was the black mass.
The shot will take out the door and post of the front of the shop, even knocking out most of the porch floor where it'll land. Hope it doesn't land on anyone's feet!
There's also a scraping sound to indicate that the cannon is being reloaded, even if it's not quite visible from here. ]
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[at any rate, Milla had done her best to try and shield Xion when positioning herself in front of the door. as such, when the cannonball comes bursting through the wood, it catches Milla right in the ribs first. now. . . while Milla may be the woman who took an explosion to the legs, several powerful hits to the gut, plenty of enemy magic to the face and a whoooooole host of other hurt during her battles at home. . . that's still a goddamn cannonball]
[so she's being forcibly flung from the porch now with nothing but a choked and pained cry. and since Xion was behind her, the other woman might be getting tossed back with her. the sound of the cannon reloading doesn't even register right now, because freakin' ow]
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Xion doesn't even think when they land, just reacts, grabbing Milla and pulling her away from the line of fire. Here's where a lifetime of combat actually starts to pay off. It's just muscle memory. She's gasping as she does it, not even because she finds Milla hard to move, but because she's putting full weight on her heel and it's sort of agonizing. Adrenaline lets her ignore it, though.
That noise, that awful scraping, gets Xion to look at the building in a panic. ]
Something's... I think it's happening again!
[ haha REALLY PULLING MILLA OUT OF THE LINE OF FIRE like she's not risking that twice. still, her eyes are wide with horror ]
We have to stop it! Milla, are you okay? Do you need me to get help?
[ god how does she do all of this, help milla but also stop the cannon from destroying, like, Everything ]
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Milla Maxwell, saved by abs???). and of course, she does what she always does when she's injured and probably in need of immediate medical attention][she attempts to push herself up into a sitting position and stand up!! it's. . . a lot more difficult than she'd like it to be. she definitely has a couple of broken ribs, and her torso absolutely burns with pain every time she takes a breath. which, by the way, are coming in short, shallow gasps. which makes talking very difficult]
I-I'm-- f-f. . . all right.
[she's not fine, but she's going to tap into her determination and try to pretend like she is. (hint: it's not working). she manages to crawl up onto to her knees, but one arm is wrapped around her ribs while her gaze narrows at the hole where the gunsmith's door used to be]
W-we need to f. . . find the mechanism t-to turn it off, before it fires again!
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[ Xion hovers over her friend, her whole chest cavity a churning mess of panic and fury and concern. She doesn't push Milla, but....
They don't have any time!
With a hurried glance at the building, Xion makes a decision she knows she'll regret. Whispering a mental apology to everyone who's ever loved her, she stands straight. ]
Please, try and get all the boards off one window. I'll need a way back out!
[ And then she's gone, darting into the Gunsmith through the door. She'll get out and stay out of the direct line of fire of the cannon, but given they couldn't see inside very well, she has no idea what to expect from the rest of the interior. But once she's reasonably out of the way of cannon-fire she'll try and at least take stock to see ... well, what's in here, and which way to go. ]
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Those shelves, the ones loaded with weaponry? The real weird thing about them is that they all seem to be... loaded. So, this is what happens.
The cannonball will blast, shooting off to the left and narrowly misses Xion who is doing the whole dodge and weave thing. She'll see the pile of balls next to the cannonball, and an arm sticking out of the ground nearby, picking up cannonballs in its hand and pressing them into the shaft. It's, naturally, not quick enough for someone running straight at it but --
But, again, those weapons. A nearby crossbow is going to take aim at Xion and fire. The arrow bolt is going to embed itself in her knee, the same leg that's already broken.
Xion used to be a replica, then she took an arrow to the knee. ]
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Xion falls with a scream of pain, but she refuses to stay still. Her whole leg is now burning agony, but she uses her hands and her good leg to keep moving, dragging herself along the floor and squinting ahead. Is that ... is that an arm? An actual human arm???????
At least now that she's inside she can assess what the hell is in here, and probably also pointed at her. Her whole body is heaving with pain and she kind of wants to throw up, but nearly dying many times to droves of Heartless is enough to keep her going. She's been hurt worse.
What else is in here that she can see and get out of the way of while still making her way over to the cannon? Because she'll try, unless this really seems like a hopeless endeavor that will get her quickly killed.
She is definitely also hoping that Milla will be able to get those boards off. ]
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[one breath. two breaths. then three, all raspy and quick. her ribs hurt. they hurt so bad (human bodies are so fragile) but she doesn't taste copper and she doesn't feel blood. that's a good sign, right? she's fought monsters through worse pain, she took down a freakin' Hammerzamm while in excruciating agony from her aspyrixis. she can do this]
[she pushes herself to her feet quickly, ignoring the way her body throbs. she stumbles forward, eyes locked on the window that's still boarded up, expression determined. she's a woman on a mission, and once she gets close enough, she grabs one of those planks of wood and starts tearing them down. every movement causes her body to ache, but she can do this. Xion needs her to do this]
[the BOOM of the cannon, and Xion's scream, don't get her to stop. but they do get her to tense up]
Xion! Are you all right?!
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Also, there's kind of... everything? On the shelves. It's a weapons shop. Which means another crossbow is going to take aim and embed itself in the back of Xion's leg. Same leg that took an arrow to the knee, yes. ]
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The second arrow to her leg gets another scream, this one longer that turns into a wail of pain. But she doesn't stop moving, doesn't stop dragging herself forward. By now tears of pain are streaming down her face, but her expression is contorted with effort and anger.
You wanna fight you fuckin arm?! She'll fight you! She'll fight you!!!!!
Mostly what this means is grabbing it by the wrist and yanking, wondering if she can pull it up somehow. Her other hand reaches out to push at and attempt to scatter the cannonballs. ]
I'm fine! [ she'll shriek at Milla, because that's the truth. ] Just don't stop!
[ She's starting to think she might not get out of here. She's wishing now that she hadn't dropped Soul Eater outside when that first cannonball crashed into them. She could use it like a crutch. As it is, she'll have to somehow get out under her own power. ]
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[it takes her a bit longer than usual to tear those boards down (because. . . well, you know why), but once she does she takes the hilt of Higekiri's sword and uses it to smash the glass on the window. through it, she can now see Xion struggling towards the arm (arm??? HUMAN ARM???) with two arrows embedded in her leg. she can also see the crossbows lining the walls]
[oh god. oh god. she thinks fast, because if she doesn't, Xion isn't going to survive this]
[silently, she's grateful Sara talked her into taking firearms lessons earlier in the weak. she still isn't great with them, and she still vastly prefers her sword, but hell. without her spirit artes, she can't attack those crossbows from a distance]
K-keep your head d-down, Xion!
[god. yelling hurts. yelling hurts so bad. nevertheless, Milla levels the firearm through the window and takes aim at the crossbows (and makes sure she is very much aiming away from Xion). although her hands shake slightly from the pain, she does her best to keep them steady. she can do this. she can channel Alvin for the briefest of moments, can't she?]
[and then she fires, attempting to knock the crossbows down one by one]
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At least the crossbows do get knocked out of the way even if the arm keeps fighting her. She'll have to tug at it. Tug and tug and tug until it's ripped right out of the floorboards in a mess of blood and sinew. The floor underneath looks... bloodstained, but that's about it. There's not much sense in where the arm came from.
Though, somewhere Natalie Goodman will feel an intense searing pain, as if she just lost her arm all over again. Poor girl.
And then the gunsmith will go still. ]
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A gasp of surprise escapes her when the arm rips free, and, god, it's bloody, it's real, this is beyond horrifying--
But she's in so much pain she almost can't process it. She drops the arm because touching it at all is making her skin crawl, and once the gunsmith goes still, she just kind of ... lays there, for a moment, panting.
Is it ... done? Did they ... succeed?
Xion hardly has time or the presence of mind to care. Leaving the arm behind, she starts the slow and very painful process of dragging herself towards the door. Without an arm to fire the cannon, it's hopefully a safe exit. Xion will make it all the way to the doorway, and then, for some insane reason, try to use it to pull herself to her feet.
This is very hard.
But at least she can pull herself up enough to look around for-- ]
Milla?
[ Her body doesn't feel real right now. After the initial cracking pain of each shot it's like her body has gone warm and almost numb. She knows it'll get worse soon.
But Milla -- she has to make sure Milla is okay -- ]
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I'm h-here.
[the words come out soft and wheezed. what if she just. sits here for a bit?? and doesn't move??? the pain is so white hot that she can no longer move through it]
. . . it seems I s-should have left a note before we came here, much like Jason did for me.
[#hindsight. Milla's pride in herself was, occasionally, her downfall]
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this icon is regret.jpg
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there is not enough regret in this town to make up for our sins sorry dad
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